as in prairie
a broad area of level or rolling treeless country
a report on the arctic tundra of Alaska and the polar bears that inhabit that vast, frozen plain
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Recent Examples of tundra
About a dozen of us from an Adventure Canada expedition cruise walked across spongy tundra and up one gnarly gneiss rock formation after another.
—
Robert Annis, Travel + Leisure, 16 Feb. 2026
During the summer mating season, though, they can be found nesting on the Arctic tundra.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 14 Feb. 2026
The forests are marked by sparse conifer stands, woodlands, herbaceous vegetation, and unvegetated barrens that dominate the transition to Arctic tundra.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 10 Feb. 2026
Beginning in Anchorage and finishing in Nome, competitors race through blizzards, sub-zero temperatures and gale force winds in a racing event that crosses through a rugged landscape of tundra and spruce forests, over hills and mountain passes, across rivers and even over sea ice.
—Jack Bantock, CNN Money, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tundra
Robert Annis, Travel + Leisure, 16 Feb. 2026
During the summer mating season, though, they can be found nesting on the Arctic tundra.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 14 Feb. 2026
The forests are marked by sparse conifer stands, woodlands, herbaceous vegetation, and unvegetated barrens that dominate the transition to Arctic tundra.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 10 Feb. 2026
Beginning in Anchorage and finishing in Nome, competitors race through blizzards, sub-zero temperatures and gale force winds in a racing event that crosses through a rugged landscape of tundra and spruce forests, over hills and mountain passes, across rivers and even over sea ice.
—Jack Bantock, CNN Money, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tundra
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tundra
Noun
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For much of the last century, bison were absent from this yawning expanse of mountain and prairie in central Wyoming.—
Christine Peterson,
Outdoor Life,
5 Mar. 2026
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Once established, queen of the prairie produces masses of fragrant, pale pink flower heads throughout the summer, along with bright green, finely cut foliage that's resistant to hungry deer.—
Lynn McAlpine,
Better Homes & Gardens,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Folktales are filled with people fighting to survive in forests, steppes, and deserts, and evading and outwitting the wild beasts that dwell within them.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Even today, its influence stretches from the steppes of Kazakhstan to the far reaches of low Earth orbit.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
15 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Passengers swapped T-shirts with sweaters as the train gathered speed, and the plains around Bologna flitted by the window.—
Vic O'Sullivan,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Mar. 2026
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The lunar sea Mare Crisium (the Sea of Crisis) is just visible as a dark circular feature at the top of the sunlit lunar disk, where lava flooded a network of impact craters over a billion years ago, before hardening into a vast basaltic plain.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The reservation’s millions of acres cover and border terrain from rivers and grasslands to high alpine systems, including the largest contiguous glacial complex in the lower 48.—
Christine Peterson,
Outdoor Life,
5 Mar. 2026
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According to a 2020 Department of Agriculture document that discusses oil and gas development of the grasslands where the trail is located, drill pads are expected to involve four to seven acres of initial disturbance, which would be reduced to an acre or less as the site is maintained.—
Alex Heard,
Outside,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
No colonial power had ever controlled the swamps and savannas of the interior—an alien land of lagoons, glade marshes, prairies, and hardwood thickets.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Feb. 2026
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Since the end of his playing days, Griffey has embraced photography, taking pictures from the African savanna to the Masters Tournament in Georgia.—
C. Trent Rosecrans,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tundra.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tundra. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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